Mosquitoes, like all insects, are cold-blooded creatures. As a result, they are incapable of regulating body heat, and their temperature is essentially the same as their surroundings. Mosquitoes function best at 80o F, become lethargic at 60o F, and cannot function below 50o F. In tropical areas, mosquitoes are active year round. In temperate climates, mosquitoes become inactive with the onset of cool weather and enter hibernation to live through the winter.

They can live quite happily, through the coldest winter, if they have an insulated coop or a light inside their coop. The smaller the coop, the easier it is for them to keep it warm. Birds can get frostbite. Birds with large combs tend to be more susceptible. Also, some breeds are just hardier than others. See similar questions...

In Australia there are around 400 species but only approximately 10 are commonly abundant and represent a serious pest threat because of their nuisance biting or their ability to transmit disease. (BACK) See similar questions...

Sometimes (but only in the summer!). Some years there are almost none, and others there are many. The lodge site is windy enough to keep them down, and once on the glaciers they tend to become very few. See similar questions...

Bluebirds in the Lower Willamette Valley do not migrate south for the winter. They tend to join small flocks and forage on insects and dried berries. The will move to lower elevations if the winter is very cold. Sometimes they will roost over night in a nest box during the bitterest weather. See similar questions...

Winter thunderstorms are rare because the air is more stable – strong updrafts cannot form because the surface temperatures during the winter are colder. See similar questions...